Fractionation of polyphenols in hawthorn into polymeric procyanidins, phenolic acids and flavonoids prior to high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis

Polymeric procyanidins, phenolic carboxylic acids and flavonoids of hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata) were fractionated prior to HPLC analysis using column chromatography and solid-phase extraction (SPE). The flavonoid fraction also contained (−)-epicatechin. The three groups of phenolics, each with clearly different UV spectra, were examined by means of high-performance liquid chromatography–diode array detection (HPLC–DAD) analysis. The average repeatability of the method (RSD) was in the range of 8–13% for chlorogenic acid, (−)-epicatechin and hyperoside. The polymeric procyanidins of hawthorn flowers consisted mainly of (−)-epicatechin subunits, and their mean degree of polymerization (DP) was 22.2. The HPLC methods developed can be used for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of different phenolic compounds in hawthorn plant material and their extracts.